Morpheus (computer program)
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- For other meanings of the name Morpheus, see Morpheus.
Morpheus is the name of a file sharing client for Microsoft Windows, operated by the company StreamCast (formerly called MusicCity), that originally used the OpenNAP peer-to-peer (P2P) platform.
Located at Morpheus.com (http://www.morpheus.com/), it has a Web-based search interface, just like Audiogalaxy had, though Morpheus searches all kinds of media, not just MP3s. In 2001, Morpheus changed protocols, from OpenNAP to FastTrack. On February 26 2002, all Morpheus clients suddenly stopped working when the FastTrack protocol was updated and Morpheus users no longer were allowed to log into the network. This was apparently because of a licensing dispute between StreamCast and the owners of FastTrack. On March 2, 2003 a new, less-robust Morpheus client using the Gnutella network and the networking core from the Gnucleus servent was released. After some dispute over the GPL, under which Gnucleus had been released, Morpheus switched to a very outdated Jtella core, and after the disputes had been worked out, Morpheus switched back to the Gnucleus core. Since then, the network core has been updated to include Gnutella2, and StreamCast has created their own network, 'NEOnet,' and has included support for MLDonkey plugins, allowing access to EDonkey Network, Overnet Network, and, once again, FastTrack.
In April 2003, Grokster and StreamCast (providers of the Morpheus P2P software) obtained a ruling by a Los Angeles federal court judge, Stephen Wilson, in its favour against the RIAA and the motion picture industry which stated that their file swapping software was not illegal. On 20 August 2003, the decision was appealed. On 17 August, 2004, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a partial ruling supporting Grokster and StreamCast, holding...
This appeal presents the question of whether distributors of peer-to-peer file-sharing computer networking software may be held contributorily or vicariously liable for copyright infringements by users. Under the circumstances presented by this case, we conclude that the defendants are not liable for contributory and vicarious copyright infringement and affirm the district court's partial grant of summary judgment.
In December 2004, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case. Oral arguments began on 29 March 2005. A decision is expected in July 2005. (See also MGM v. Grokster.)
See also
External links
- MGM v. Grokster case documents (http://www.eff.org/IP/P2P/MGM_v_Grokster/)
- MGM v. Grokster Ninth Circuit oral argument transcript (http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20040823002045984)
- MGM v Grokster Day 1 (http://www.mp3newswire.net/stories/5002/mgmday1.html) - Coverage from MP3 Newswire on the first day of the Supreme Court trial.hu:Morpheus (számítógépes program)